


A Garden of Unease

by HyourinmaruIce



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Beauty and the Beast, Beauty and the Beast Elements, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-03
Updated: 2015-07-03
Packaged: 2018-04-07 11:56:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4262427
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HyourinmaruIce/pseuds/HyourinmaruIce
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Garnet lives in a provincial town, and all she wanted was a rainbow rose.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Part 1 of 2 (I'm pulling my tumblr stories and putting them on archive)

            Rose was an enchantress. It had taken a long time to develop her skills, long that she’d watched people she loved age, wither, and die long before she had even aged a day. In some ways, it was a curse. In others, a blessing. It was never both.

            After a couple hundred years, she sat in a kingdom and watched the king spoil his eldest daughter. She received all the gold and lavish dressings a person could dream of, but his younger daughter, whose skin was fair enough she’d burn upon going out, resided alone. Her tutors always praised her, but that fell on the king’s deaf ears with the weight of a crumb. The librarian talked of how she’d read every book in the library, and the queen did not care. The servants whispered about her, complimenting and wishing she was the eldest so she might take the throne… and it only fell into silence.

            Her name was Pearl. She was very sweet, but incredibly shy, and yet Rose liked her. She was… wonderful.

            On her 15 th birthday, the king threw a party. It wasn’t as large as her sister’s, a month before when the elder had turned 17 and received a proposal of marriage (Rose thought it was interesting that a princess had made it, commenting more to herself than the young maiden that heard her not two feet away), but it was enough. Pearl didn’t like big parties anyway.

            It was at this party that the king formally introduced her to Rose. While having lived in the same castle for over a decade, the king didn’t like Rose. No, he preferred the yellow robes of his advisor and the blue of his neighboring kingdom’s tactician before he would call upon her. She rather disliked him for it, because it lead to war and famine… it left his peasants to rot.

            Pearl instantly was infatuated, and Rose could not hide her liking of the young girl either.

            From that day forward, suitors were allowed to step forward and attempt for Pearl’s hand… but the king either found them unworthy, his lust for gold greater than anything else, or Pearl dismissed them without a second thought. Another princess, like the one dressed in flames of red and orange that came for her sister before, came and didn’t even try. She saw Pearl, saw the look in her eyes, and sighed… declaring that Pearl’s heart was already taken and she would not be as fortunate as her sister.

            Eventually, Rose worried about Pearl.

            And then she confronted her.

            She saw her love both blossom and wilt in her eyes, her love for the girl to which she’d given a kiss… a touch at night and shared moments. She loved this girl, with all of her heart, but she was an enchantress, older than any living being and strong enough to move mountains… no… Pearl needed someone that would be there for her always.

            “I don’t think anyone else could love me Rose! Not like you. Let me be with you!”

            “Pearl, that just can’t happen….”

            And their arguments got more heated, each ending in a debate and the debate circled the castle like a spring breeze. The king and queen, however, never knew.

            So one argument, in the heat of the moment and the pain of seeing Pearl’s face contorted into something… something not right, Rose cast a curse.

            “Rose! No, why won’t you let me do this for you!”

            “My Pearl… I do this for your own good,” Words flowed, wind blew, and the air felt warm, “Have this rose,” She pulled it from the air, “As a symbol of my love and a symbol of this curse… Pearl, someone will love you. You look down upon yourself, and you wish to give up everything for me…. Therefore I cast this curse: If you don’t find someone that you accept, that you will believe loves you, before your 21 st birthday… I’m afraid I’m going to leave you a beast forever.”

            Pearl watched as the rose began to spin, leaving Rose’s hands and hovering in air between them. Her body was lifted, spun, changed in ways she hadn’t known were possible.

            When she dropped back down, she was a beast. With claws and feathers, she stood as tall as Rose.

            The kingdom fell shortly after that, and time around her slowed. Her time moved nowhere near as quickly as every else’s, and it was almost like she was stuck in a vortex… never to see her family or Rose again.

            Years later, a little village sprung up in the ashes of the castle’s shadow. It was quaint, with people getting along and others merely tolerating. Except…

            “Witch’s daughter!” Villagers spat.

            “What filth, you’re not even human!” Men remarked.

            “Always got her nose in a book, and that dreamy far off look? I bet she’s thinking of witch craft,” The woman crowed.

            Garnet wasn’t very liked. Her two moms had no explanation for her being, she just was and everyone around her hated that she managed to exist where sons of men had died.

            She ignored them, making her way out of town by pretending to read and distracting herself. Paying attention, dodging the thrown eggs, resisting the urge to punch those who dissed her parents, it was all very hard work.

            But her parents were there, happy, smiling, waiting for her.

            “How was the market today?”

            “Did you punch someone! Please say you did, I can’t wait to hear about it from that loser… Sapph, what’s the loser’s name?” Ruby was the shorter of her two mothers, and both were rather short.

            “That would be Lars, Ruby, didn’t he find a wife though?” Sapphire was cooking, stirring the pot above the fire.

            “Nah, Sadie dumped his as-“

            “Ruby.”

            “Butt, I was gunna say butt.”

            Garnet smiled, happy to be home. The villages were only so right; only one mom was a witch. The other was an inventor, preparing for the upcoming fair.

            “Ruby, don’t touch my invention. You have your magic, I have my science. I swear, if you break it again I’m going to chop your hands off.” Sapphire turned away from the pot, bringing the hot spoon down on Ruby’s hands.

            “I have your bread mum,” Garnet pulls out the basket she’d hidden beneath her cloak, placing it on the table and watching as the steam rose from the fresh rolls.

            “Thank you love, mind helping your mom pull my invention out into the yard? We’re leaving in the morning.”

            So off they went, with Ruby babbling about how her magic could cook the food and pull the wagon, and Garnet listened with a smile… even if she agreed with Sapphire on this one.

            Once the invention was out, Ruby stopped and watched the house, “Hey, Garnet, is there something you want? From the fair? I know you always have the town to buy things, but if there’s anything you want…. I can get it for you. I’ll pay and everything.”

            Garnet thought it over, “A rose. A rainbow colored one.”

            Ruby groans, “You’re just being a little sh-“

            “RUBY!”

            “COMING!” As Ruby hurries inside, Garnet can hear her mutter, “I swear, I’m the witch but she’s got the magical hearing.”

            The next day, a storm came in, and Sapphire and Ruby were stuck on the road in the forest… traveling, fighting to stay out of the torrential drenching that was occurring. The invention was getting wet, Ruby’s magic was a bust without her energy, and they both were miserable. 

            Fortunately, in this dark, spooky, really creepy forest no one should transverse though, there was a castle. There is lightening, thunder rolling across the hills, the whole thing with wolves in the forest… Seriously, why did they do this? What’s wrong with them? Why does this always happen and…

            “NARRATOR!” Sapphire yells.

            Right. Sorry.

            So, seeking shelter, the two come to the castle gates. Ruby, the most assured of the two, knocks, seeking entry. There is only the hollow scraping of rusted metal, as the gate opens and no one waits on the other side. She steps in, careful of the various cracks and holes in the cobbles. It’s not very taken care of, the castle, and she sees the crumbling as a sign that it might need a few people to take care of it. Signaling Sapphire, they make their way deeper into the castle grounds.

            Upon coming inside, there is warmth that permeates their beings. Their wet clothes begin to dry while still on them, and a wind sweeps through to dust them off. Exploring the castle, they come upon a dinner set for two, the seats adjacent and the food scrumptious.

            They eat their fill, and then explore to find the bedrooms that can always be found in a castle like this. Not only do they find a bed for two, they find clothes and a good night’s rest.

            The next morning, amidst groggy groans, bleary eyes and muttered curses, the two stumble out of the castle to find their transport fixed, the invention dried (and fixed if Sapphire wasn’t too proud to say otherwise), and extra food packed away.

            “Let’s get going Ruby… Ruby?” Surprised by the lack of her lover’s hand, Sapphire turns to see her staring, transfixed at something, “Rubes… what is it?”

            “How… Sapphire, I have tons of magic at my disposal, and yet I couldn’t even make this. Look,” Ruby goes along and clips a single rose from the bush, holding it to Sapphire in a light that made it seems like the petals were a thousand colors at once.

            “Trick?”

            Ruby shakes her head, and from the castle comes a sound of a hollow screech, followed by a roar and crashing. The two begin to scramble away, but between them and the carriage is a monster. It stands at eight foot eight, with long, spindly legs, and feathers covering the entire body. The beak protrudes from a half-human looking face, and the bluest eyes anyone’s ever seen stare at them with anger and betrayal.

            “You dare break my trust?” The voice is soft, catering to the both of them by lilting in such a manner to sound pleasant.

            “What?” Ruby asks, not thinking before speaking, as she always seems to do.

            “I give you food. I give you A BED. I GIVE YOU NEW CLOTHES AND FIX YOUR TRANSPORTATION. I GIVE YOU EVERYTHING AND YOU CANNOT HELP BUT TAKE MORE?” The voice rises in a crescendo, building up until the words boom and resound off the cobblestones.

            “Look, I’m sorry,” Ruby shakes the rainbow rose, “My daughter wanted a rainbow rose, she… she…”

            The bird being looks at her, curious if she could guess, and then it calms. Suddenly, explicably, “You have a daughter?”

            “Yes.”

            The bird steps forward, coming closer to them with each word, “How did you manage that?”

            Sapphire and Ruby exchange glances, and the bird comes even closer before Ruby can respond, “I’m a witch, she’s an inventor… we manage.”

            The bird stops, tilts its head, and delivers a final message, “You can keep the rose, but in return your daughter must come live with me.”

            Ruby and Sapphire scramble to protest but the bird sweeps a wing out and knocks them both down.

            “That is final! She will stay with me forever, and you’ll understand the cost of betrayal.”

 


	2. A Garden of Unease, falling downward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garnet takes rose

 Ruby and Sapphire’s transport wraps around them, swallowing their cries as the bird leaves them with a final message, “If she does not arrive within the week, I shall send for the both of you.”

            The fair goes on by, Sapphire and Ruby trudge home, and their daughter greets them with a smile and laughter, “Did you guys win something at the fair? How’d the invention go?”

            Ruby holds out the rainbow rose, running her thumb across the edge of a petal as the light makes the colors dance, and begins to explain what happened. Shocked, and being eaten alive by indecision, a day rolls by before Garnet makes her choice. She looks to her grieving parents.

            “I’m going.”

            Ruby hugs her, “You don’t have to. You don’t, I’ll do something. Saph will invent something. Please.”

            Then Sapphire hugs her as well, “Please, we love you.”

            “I have to, I can’t let that monster take you two.”

            A carriage awaits her, the door open and the step pulled out. She steps in, and she’s whisked off without another word to her parents. The ride is short; the forest dark, the castle looming in the distance… and Garnet is calm.

            She has no fault with her predicament, she knew one day her sass would come back to bite. Besides being really surprised by the fact that a rainbow rose exists, she’s curious about seeing the monster her parents had told her about.

            The forest splits to show the castle. It’s crumbling, falling apart in places where the outer most walls reside. There are bushes lining the cobblestone path, the some are the rainbow bushes, some are just red roses. She’s unsure of how to approach getting out of the carriage, until it stops and opens the doors without her having to ask.

            The doors to the castle open and Garnet steps slowly out of the carriage and beyond the threshold to see the great hall. How her parents somehow failed to describe the shear beauty of this place, when one certainly knew how to describe things as beautiful, was astonishing. The doors shut with a bang behind her.

            “Welcome,” The voice is elegant, rumbling, bouncing out of the depths of the room so Garnet hears it come all sides, “to my castle.”

            A shadow flicks across the hall, and Garnet almost feels a clenching in her heart. There are six pillars, marble floors, a grand staircase that winds itself into two different directions, and elegant depictions of the history of the kingdom all along the walls trim.

            “Come on in, no need to be shy,” The voice bounces off every wall, tinkling as the glass of the windows shake, “I don’t bite.”

            Garnet steps up the staircase, her fingers gliding along the railing, “I should be able to see my host.”

            “You don’t want to see me,” The voice changes, defensive, “I’m not a pretty sight.”

            Garnet snorts, “I didn’t ask if you were pretty… left or right?”

            “Left please, I have a room made up for you... perhaps at dinner,” The voice seems to laugh.

            In the room, there are clothes laid on the bed. The bed is longer, designed for taller people, and the wardrobe opens at the snap of her fingers.  Magic. It feels like magic at her fingertips, in her feet... it feels wonderful.

            She passes the rest of the day exploring, the voice leading her. Go this way for this; go that way for those… don’t go there. Only one small branch is forbidden, but it marks her need to explore further.  The voice ends up laughing, enjoying leading her through wild goose chases and around corners.

            Then dinnertime rolls around and Garnet is lead to a room with a dining table that stretches into the depths of the room. It’s dark on the other end, and a rustling can be heard… but Garnet sits where she’s directed to, and she smiles towards the blackness.

            The voice comes from there, no longer resounding and bounding about, but softer, quiet in the still air, “Good evening, what kind of food would you like?”

            “Whatever you want, I’m not picky,” Garnet shifts, watching as a single feather comes into view.

            The candles go out, just for a few seconds, and when their flicker up even brighter than before to reveal a buffet of sorts. A cooked turkey, entire plates of various fruits and vegetables that are both foreign and familiar, some strange looking pieces of meat… and towards the end of the table there was rice wrapped in something Garnet was unfamiliar with. A single… finger? ... it was probably a finger, but it had feathers that grew sparser until the fingertip extended into a talon, appeared out of the dark.

            The talon hooked the end of a plate, slowly sliding in into shadows. Garnet began to eat, but she watched the end of the table. Sometimes, the talon would reveal a petite hand, the feathers not on the palm but the back of the hand… not quite thick, and revealing pale skin beneath. Other times, the talon revealed the other talons. There was one on each finger, the thumb included but the talon on that one much smaller than the rest.

            Garnet watched, enjoyed learning about her host, and she ate in small amounts. She learned what she liked, the different vegetables that made her smile, and the fruits that she was deterred from. Most of the things displayed were enjoyable.

            “Enjoying your meal?” the voice was fluid, lovely sounding.

            “Oh yes,” Garnet replied, and she smirked at the thought of this entire castle under this powerful being’s hands… and they cared more about her meal than the fact that the table magically sprouted mushrooms next to some rather tasty bread.

            “Good,” The sound of something tapping glass could be heard, a thrumming… whoever was her host was thinking.

            She waits, eating by picking at whatever is within reach, and listens as the voice sighs.

            “I really don’t know how else to satisfy you, do you wish to have dessert?” The hand snakes out, her fingers are pressed together… and then the middle finger comes down to hit the base of the thumb and a sound occurs. It’s sharper, higher pitched than anything Garnet can do.

            The table’s contents burst into smoke, and then are replaced with various fluffy cakes and pastries. She can’t even name them; the only thing she knows is that her host is being overly generous.

            “I don’t even know what these things are.”

            Her host chuckles, and, as they seem to adjust in their seat, the face is revealed. Garnet becomes more interested. Her host is pale, with raven like features that seem… like a human that’s been elongated. Their nose is longer than most, their teeth sharper. The face disappears after a second, but Garnet can safely say her host is smiling, and had at least a little bit of humanity.

            “I could help you learn,” The voice comes a second after the talons appear, resting on the table, “If you’re interested.”

            “I’d like that.”

            The two dance around one another, learning about things and exploring more of the castle. Weeks pass by, and the winter comes, making it hard to step outside. Her boots aren’t meant for winter traveling.

            Garnet misses her family however, and she makes plans. Perhaps her host knows, because they’re more distant for a few days. No shadows flicker, no magic fills her heart with wonder, and the food is eaten alone. She hadn’t eaten alone since she’d arrived… Perhaps her host knows.  It worries her.

            She proceeds, slipping out into forest at night when her host’s voice has gone silent. Assuming that the being that watches over her is asleep might be dangerous, but she’s got to break out sometime. Forever is too long to not see her parents.

            The snow sloshes around her feet, the thickness varying as her trek into the forest lengthens. It comes down all around her, blocking out her vision. She continues in the direction though, and hopes the sounds around her don’t mean the night had decided to tear her apart.

            It’s wolves, of course it is, is the thought that crosses Garnet’s mind as the canine’s jump at her. One latches on her arm, another on her leg, and she’s tumbling down into the deepening snow without being able to do much for it. She fights of course, kicking and lashing out.

            The snow turns red around her, but then… there is silence and she only hears the beating of her heart. The wolves whine, and a thump lands beside her in the snow and a roaring… that of a bird, a screeching, a thunderous caw that rips open the air and the wings slam into the wolves. The beak clamps down on one neck, ripping it open and leading to more red snow all around them.

            The next thing Garnet can process are talons curling around her arm as she’s pressed against a chest that doesn’t belong to her parents. It’s her host, holding her, carrying her, and the words flow out of her host like the being can’t help but babble.

            “It’s okay, it’s okay. I got you. Stay awake now, I’ve read books on this. I’ve read…. Damn it, why would you do this? If you wanted to see your parents… I’d have let you see them. I’d have let you. I… I’m so sorry. Please. Please stay with me. Stay awake. Come on…”

            Her eyes look up, looking at the face of the being that was saving her. The feathers make a widows peak on the forehead, and the feathers populate the areas that aren’t the direct face thickly while slowly disappearing closer to the eyes, nose, and mouth. It’s beautiful. The feathers… black like soot, seems to spread out behind her and Garnet realized… the two of them are running.

            Her host is worried.

            They reach the castle, the cobbles clacking beneath the clawed toes of the bird. It’s a quick transition, cobbles to marble… and she feels the softness on her back of a bed within what feels like seconds.

            She doesn’t see any sense in fighting her sleep.

            When she wakes up, a person (who appears to be a woman in her eyes, but she’s never the kind to assume) sits on the end of her bed. They have strawberry blonde hair, and eyes blue like the flowers outside her house…

            “Hello?” She tries to sit up, and in doing so, startles the person.

            Feathers burst out of their skin, all over and all at once in an elaborate array. The bird being is standing there, and their voice is that of her host.

            “Hello, are you feeling well?” The bird shuffles between their two feet, the hands wringing around themselves and Garnet is sure the elbows are actually wing parts.

            “I’m fine, thank you.”

            “Then I’ll be going,” As she turns to leave, Garnet asks her to stop and they comply. Their body shakes, a few stray feathers falls to the ground, and Garnet smiles.

            “What do I call you?”

            The bird smiles, “Pearl, my name is Pearl.”

            Garnet nods, “Let’s not be shy Pearl, I’m going to be here a long time after all.”

            The eyes that meet hers are just as blue as before, and Garnet has to think there’s a reason for them to keep the color of their eyes no matter the transformation.

            “You’re right, when you get better… I’ll show you my library.”

            It turns out, the library is one of the hidden rooms she’d not been allowed to touch. They spend much more time together after that.

            Weeks go by again, and they spend long winter evenings in the library. Pearl’s voice is beautiful, and Garnet could listen to it all day as they read out thick, innuendo filled, Shakespeare and recites poems from memory. One time, Garnet dared them to recite their favorite poem and… well…

            Garnet has yet to recover quite from the experience.

            She also begins to throw snowballs at them, mostly watching as they elegantly dodge and smirk at her from afar. One day, however, a snowball hits her in the back of the head… A war is started and it lasts until winter passes. Garnet never gets tired of hearing their laugh.

            With spring comes the realization that Garnet has not seen her parents in almost a year and it sinks into her chest like a cold stone. Her bird friend notices, offering things that might belay her need to return to parents that are concerned.

            Garnet remembers that night, with the wolves. The words whispered harshly over her, and the tightness with which the bird had held her. It doesn’t leave her mind much.

            One day in mid spring, amidst growing gardens and blooming flowers, they dance. It’s not anything like the casual dances Garnet’s experience back home… it’s… magical. Pearl shows up, dressed in a fine suit to cover her feathers, and Garnet comes in the most interesting red dress she can find. They’d planned it for play, to try out the ballroom and the music Pearl had been practicing on the piano. It wasn’t meant to mean anything.

            But Pearl spins in Garnet’s arms, and Garnet laughs as she is also twirled. The two dance, hands to hips and elbows locked, and they spin closer with every second as the music floats over them from a magically tuned piano.

            Closer, they spin and laugh, and Garnet wonders at how flexible Pearl is to get their leg that high, when the music stops and they both realize Pearl’s run out of things to play.

            “Would you like to hear… something special?” Pearl bites their lower lip, and Garnet forces herself not to watch and not to grip Pearl’s waist a little tighter.

            “Why ever not?”

            A song begins, a song about a tale as old as time.

            They laugh together, Pearl and Garnet, and then they begin another dance. This one is slower, but Pearl pulls her closer, and Garnet does not feel the need to complain.

            It’s a short song, but they enjoy every second. Their feet are brushing against one another, and Pearl almost seems shorter as her chin is near Garnet’s brow. Bodies pressed against one another, Garnet realizes what’s happening. She feels the betrayal pulse through her, and she quickly steps away. Pearl’s concerned of course, they have every right to be, but Garnet can’t handle the closeness. She can’t handle the raw expression Pearl has, or the soft touch of feathers against her skin.

            “I need a moment.”

            She is then standing on the balcony, sucking in the night air. Pearl comes to stand beside her.

            “Beautiful night, you can see the stars particularly well…” Pearl glances her way, and they sigh, “You miss your family.”

            “Of course I do, they’re my family.”

            Pearl reaches into their pocket… and pulls out a ring, “Wear this ring, and I will know you will come back. Spin it three times to be with your parents, and three times to come back.”

            Garnet takes it, “But… why would you…”

            “Because you’re wonderful, and as much as… I appreciate your presence; I realize mine is quite a bit… unwanted. You can visit them as often, or as long, as you like. But remember this, take off that ring, and you’ll kill me.”

            Garnet is startled, and she glances between the ring and Pearl, “Why would it do that?”

            They smile, and their eyes soften as they look at Garnet, “I think you know. Have a good evening, tell your moms I said hi.”

            Then they disappear in a vortex of feathers, and Garnet can’t help but feel she’s done something wrong. The ring slips on, and it’s the perfect size.

            Months later, after visits and reassurances, Garnet and Pearl grow closer. The two rarely spend time apart, and Garnet’s visits home become shorter with longer time in-between. Her parents worry, but Garnet ignores them and proceeds with her life.

            “Oh this is so exciting! The moon is going to be gone! It happens once every month, and I always tell people but they say the moon is just resting. It’s there in the sky, but dark and no one believes me!” Pearl is huffing, ruffling up their feathers as they make themselves larger out of habit, “I’m going to watch the stars because of the lack of light the moon blocks the stars with, and I’ll laugh in their stupid little faces.”

            Garnet chuckles, watching as her bird friend sets up a telescope, “You really love the stars then?”

            Pearl glares at her, and Garnet smirks, “You know full well I love the stars. Can’t remember how many not moons you weren’t here for.  But! Tonight, you’re here and we’ll celebrate.”    

            Garnet smiles, “How will we celebrate?”

            Pearl’s talons curl around her wrists as she’s pulled into the castle, “I’m baking pie, we have the telescope set up, andddd,” Pearl’s voice takes on a song quality, “I made you something you’ll really enjoy.”

            The dancing bird sounds like a book title, but that’s the only thing Garnet can think of as she watches Pearl hop from foot to foot with excitement, “Alright.”

            Pearl giggles, and it’s probably the sweetest sound Garnet’s heard… and the sweetest sight is Pearl spinning in place and doing a backflip out the door.

            Eventually, her parents voice their concerns.

            “You could just stay here! The castle isn’t a good place for you.”

            “Please?”

            So Garnet begins to stay longer, listening to her parents’ pleas and watching as Pearl wilts a little more every time she tells them she’s off for another visit. It feels like a punch to the chest.

            “I don’t think I can do this to Pearl, they expect me back at the castle,” Garnet tells the two beings that care about her most in this world, and they look back with ridicule.

            “Pearl is a monster, they don’t care whether you’re around because if they did they wouldn’t have given you no rules in relation to the ring,” Comes from Ruby.

            “You need to be able to leave, a castle isn’t a playground. It’s not meant for people like us to thrive in,” comes from Sapphire, and perhaps they’re both right… but..

            “I’m going back, and that’s final,” Garnet sighs, “Please, understand.”

            They nod, “Stay the night though, and we’ll say goodbye in the morning.”

            So she does.

            In the morning, she wakes up and feels her hand empty. There is no ring, and Garnet scrambles to confront her parents who hold the ring aloft as she tumbles into the room.

            Garnet snatches it up and leaves right away, but her parents are smirking. She’d told them about the killing clause, and it’s the worst feeling in the world to think they’d taken advantage of it.

            Arriving back at the castle, everything is quiet. The birds are still, the air is silent, and Garnet rushes through it all to reach the library. That’s where Pearl always goes when Garnet’s away.

            She finds them in a heap of feathers in the floor, half dead and moaning.

            “Pearl!” Garnet turns them over, checking for injuries as she begins to cry, “My parents.”

            Pearl chuckles, but it’s dark and they cough, “I guessed as much… Garnet… I love you. I love you with my entire heart, and I’m sorry to bring this sadness to you.”  

            “Well I rather think I brought it to you…” Garnet rests her forehead against Pearl’s, “I love you too.”


End file.
